Letters To A Much Younger Me

Photo by Chaz McGregor Dear 11-year-old self: For as long as I can remember, I’ve suffered an emotional weakness: I’ve always had an overwhelming sense of guilt at my inability to remove pain and suffering from the world around me. I feel bad for animals… I can’t stand being in the meat section of the grocery…

Originally aired on Salt Lake City’s KCPW on April 19, 2016: The Bottom Line – (Air date: April 19/26, 2016)Bassam Salem immigrated to the U.S. from Egypt as a young kid. Despite currents of prejudice and discrimination flowing against him, Salem rose to become a successful entrepreneur and software engineer in Utah. He has been…

This series of posts (and accompanying podcast) is dedicated to my children. It consists of a series of letters from my current, older self addressed to my younger self. These letters would have helped me navigate some of the rough waters I faced during various phases of my life and when I was faced with difficult decisions. Through these letters, I hope to impart some of my admittedly limited experience on my two wonderful children and, eventually, on their children.

Dear 22-year-old self: Do you know what makes you happy? You’re already pretty sure it’s not money, and you’ll later confirm that. It’s not popularity or fame, either. As you mature, you’ll come to the realization that happiness is a fundamental and purposeful objective of life. While that will be an epiphany in and of itself for you,…

Dear 27-year-old self: I’m afraid it’s true: the more you learn about and understand the world, the more your sense of empathy will be overwhelmed by how sad, unfair, and difficult life is for so many people. Just as sad to you will be your realization that the small minority of fortunate people in the…

Dear 22-year-old self: You’re going to live in many homes throughout your life. Each will be special in their own way. Each will have benefits. None will be quite as impactful as the “big move” that took your family from Egypt to Utah and will constantly remind you that changing houses isn’t a big deal…

Dear 13-year-old self: Over the years, I’ve learned so much about what it takes to maximize potential. At your age, it won’t be completely obvious. At 13, you’ll assume that it’s the rock-star jock, the A-student, or the beautiful cheerleader who seem to have mastered their potential. At my age, however, you realize that there…